Shocker: A judge in Himachal caught red-handed accepting Rs. 40,000 bribe in first-of-its-kind case in State

MANDI – An Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate (ACJM) in Mandi district of Himachal Pradesh was caught red-handed by Mandi Vigilance team taking a bribe of Rs. 40,000 from a person on Tuesday. It’s the first-of-its-kind case in Himachal in which a judicial official was caught and booked for taking bribe. The case is likely to hurt the faith of common people in judiciary in Himachal.

The vigilance department had laid a trap on a complaint received from a person, who was facing trial in the court of the said ACJM in a check bounce case under the ‘Negotiation Instruments Act’ that involved lakhs of rupees. The ACJM had called the complainant in his chamber and had demanded a bribe of Rs. 40,000 for quick disposal of the case. Reportedly, the judge also gave a mobile number to the complainant and told him to call him. However, when the complainant didn’t call him, the judge himself called him and told to arrange said amount within two days.

The complainant, considering it a high-profile matter related to judiciary, directly approached the Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Vigilance Arvind Sharda and reveled all the details. The DIG directed Mandi Range SP Vigilance Kapil Sharma to take proper action. After the orders, a 14-member team led by DSP Abhimaniyu Varma was constituted. The team went through the facts and obtained permission from the Himachal Pradesh High Court to lay a trap to catch the ACJM red-handed.

The ACJM was arrested from his government residence accepting the bribe. The ACJM will be brought before the court on Monday for further proceedings.

The said ACJM had also served in Manali. The vigilance department has not revealed any other details.

Madan has studied English Literature and Journalism from HP University and lives in Shimla. He is an amateur photographer and has been writing on topics ranging from environmental, socio-economic, development programs, education, eco-tourism, eco-friendly lifestyle and to green technologies for over 7 years now. He has an inclination for all things green, wonderful and loves to live in solitude. When not writing, he can be seen wandering, trying to capture world around him in his DSLR lens.

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